Kitzbuehel: Big snow a worry, but FIS officials optimistic for races

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January 18, 2006

Kitzbuehel: Big snow a worry, but FIS officials optimistic for races{mosimage}KITZBUEHEL, Austria – Organizers and jury members warned the World Cup’s coaches to expect more bad weather in the coming days, but expressed some optimism about getting the Hahnenkamm races off this weekend.

Organizers said 40-60 centimeters fell on the Streif course on Tuesday night and Wednesday. They cleaned it from the race line completely, three times, but the snow kept on coming.

‘There were heavy winds on the top part, and the lower you go on the mountain the more moisture there is’ said Guenter Hujara, the FIS race director for men’s World Cup. ‘It will snow until 7 [p.m.] and then slowly decrease through the night.’

Snowcats will get on the hill at 2 or 3 a.m., and ‘all manpower’ will be in place working at 5 a.m. on Thursday.